A breathtaking exhibit full of color, light and movement.

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Blacktip Reef

Blacktip Reef is a breathtaking, award-winning exhibit full of color, light and movement located in the heart of National Aquarium. This coral-filled exhibit, replicating Indo-Pacific reefs, is active with life that guests can experience from many vantage points, including a new floor-to-ceiling pop-out viewing window that allows guests to virtually come face to face with the animals.

Blacktip Reef Awarded AZA Honor!

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) recently recognized the National Aquarium’s Blacktip Reef exhibit with the honor of Significant Achievement in Exhibit Design during AZA’s annual Honors and Awards program.

Watch Blacktip Reef live on Shark Cam:

Join us at 2:30 pm EST on Tuesdays and 3:00 pm EST on Thursdays for live presentations.

6 Secrets of Blacktip Reef

Even if you spent a full day in the National Aquarium’s Blacktip Reef exhibit, you would never learn all of the fascinating facts about its 779 animals, which range from blacktip reef sharks and tasseled wobbegongs to a 500-pound green sea turtle and honeycomb stingrays. But thanks to these insider secrets provided by our knowledgeable staff and volunteers, you’re about to know more than most visitors.

1. Our blacktip reef sharks are longtime buddies.

One of the unique characteristics about blacktip reef sharks is their camaraderie. These big fish often swim in schools in the wild, and our school of blacktip reef sharks are no different. They lived together in our Animal Care Center for 18 months before moving into their new home in Blacktip Reef, giving them plenty of bonding time before the big day.

3. Our tasseled wobbegong shark has a secret hiding place.

The tasseled wobbegong shark is tricky to spot—its ornate camouflaged exterior is easily mistaken for a piece of coral. But if you look closely at the left corner of our underwater viewing area, you’re likely to notice him resting in his favorite spot near the glass.

4. The coral reef isn’t made of real coral.

Real barrier reefs can take 100,000 to 30 million years to fully form, so growing our own coral wasn’t an option. Instead, we painstakingly crafted our own—all 3,000 pieces of it—from the molds of real coral skeletons. Now it serves as colorful shelter for our diverse array of Indo-Pacific fish.

5. Our starry puffer used to live at a dentist’s office.

The starry puffer fish can measure up to 4 feet in length and is the largest identified species of pufferfish in the world. Believe it or not, the one found in our Blacktip Reef exhibit was previously on display at a dentist’s office.

6. Zebra sharks are spotted, not striped.

The zebra sharks found in Blacktip Reef don’t appear to have stripes at all, but that wasn’t always the case. As juveniles, zebra sharks—often mistakenly called leopard sharks—have dark bodies with yellowish stripes. This pattern transforms into small dark spots on a grayish-tan background as they age.

The colossal humphead wrasse, also called the Napoleon wrasse, is one of the largest fish inhabiting coral reefs. It is easily identifiable by its thick lips, prominent bump on its forehead and two black lines behind its eyes. The coloring of humphead wrasses can range from a dull blue-green to brilliant shades of green or purplish-blue.

The reticulated whiptail ray, has a light brown body with dark brown spots. Its underside, however, is a solid off-white. Its snout is pointed, and when intact, its tail can reach three times its body size. The tail usually has one barb on it.